We Heart Bidder 70

In what is surely one of the better speeches of 2011, Tim DeChristopher used his pre-sentencing speech yesterday to deliver an eloquent paean to justice, truth, and defense of Earth. The full text can be found here, but here are some highlights:

The rule of law is dependent upon a government that is willing to abide by the law. Disrespect for the rule of law begins when the government believes itself and its corporate sponsors to be above the law.
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The reality is not that I lack respect for the law; it’s that I have greater respect for justice. Where there is a conflict between the law and the higher moral code that we all share, my loyalty is to that higher moral code.
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The majority of the public is exploited by the status quo far more than they are benefited by it. The young are the most obvious group who is exploited and condemned to an ugly future by letting the fossil fuel industry call the shots.
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The power of the Justice Department is based on its ability to take things away from people. The more that people feel that they have nothing to lose, the more that power begins to shrivel.
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The people who are committed to fighting for a livable future will not be discouraged or intimidated by anything that happens here today. And neither will I. I will continue to confront the system that threatens our future. Given the destruction of our democratic institutions that once gave citizens access to power, my future will likely involve civil disobedience. Nothing that happens here today will change that. I don’t mean that in any sort of disrespectful way at all, but you don’t have that authority. You have authority over my life, but not my principles. Those are mine alone.
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I’m not saying any of this to ask you for mercy, but to ask you to join me.
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At this point of unimaginable threats on the horizon, this is what hope looks like. In these times of a morally bankrupt government that has sold out its principles, this is what patriotism looks like. With countless lives on the line, this is what love looks like, and it will only grow. The choice you are making today is what side are you on.

It is clear that the Court was on the wrong side, like the BLM is on the wrong side, like the Department of Interior is on the wrong side. It's systemic, and it's not going to change until we stop participating.

People like us, well, sure, we go to public meetings and we speak up even when no one in the audience agrees with us. We call our Congresspeople to thank or spank them when necessary. We support myriad conservation groups and ride our bikes. We write our snarky little blog posts and wear political T-shirts. But have we ever actually put our bodies in front of the bulldozers or our bidding paddles in the air at a corrupt auction?

No.

And it's clearly not enough.